DUANE
Duane's take
Here's the story as the official marker tells it, right here along the old Southern Overland Mail route in Coke County. The mail had to get through — and for a few years, it did, in spectacular fashion. John Butterfield's company launched service in 1858, and for the first time ever, passengers and mail could travel together between the Pacific and Atlantic coasts without getting on a boat.
That was no small thing. That was the whole continent, stitched together by wheel and hoof. Butterfield's operation ran west out of St.
Louis and Memphis, and when you look at the numbers, they are not subtle: 1,350 horses and mules, 90 Concord coaches and wagons, rolling across country that had no intention of making it easy. The stage traveled at a run — the marker says so plain as day — despite a decided lack of good roads. You'd hear that coach coming before you saw it, and the signal it gave approaching a station meant fresh horses were already being swapped out and food was hitting the table before the dust settled.
The route stretched 2,700 miles, with stations anywhere from 12 to 113 miles apart. Sometimes the route itself had to shift just to find water. Out west of Fort Belknap, they ran mules instead of horses — mules being less coveted than horses, which made them a quieter target when it came to Indian attacks.
Crew and passengers both wore guns. Nobody was pretending this was a leisurely excursion. Through Texas alone, the stage crossed from Preston — now resting under the waters of Lake Texoma — through Jacksboro, Fort Belknap, Fort Chadbourne, and on to El Paso.
Seven days just to cross Texas. The full trip, one way, took 25 days. And that seat cost you $200.
One way. Passengers rarely stepped off mid-journey, because if they did, they might not find a seat on the next stage, and then where would they be — standing in the Texas dust with $200 less in their pocket. Merchants in Jacksboro and other towns used Butterfield's light freight service to run something like mail-order sales.
And beyond commerce, the stage carried news — coaches brought mail from the west one to ten days faster than it arrived by ship. That was the greatest contribution, the marker says: the news. The world moving faster than it ever had.
Then came 1861, and the Civil War ended it. Just like that, three years of iron-schedule, flat-out running, 1,350 animals and 90 coaches — stopped. The road is still here, more or less, and this marker was erected by the Moody Foundation in 1966 as part of the Early Travel, Communication and Transportation Series.
Some contributions don't get a long run. They just get the one they needed.
What the marker says
Passed near this site, providing for the first time combined passenger and mail service between Pacific and Atlantic coasts. Operating west from St. Louis and Memphis, John Butterfield's company used 1,350 horses and mules and 90 Concord coaches and wagons. Stage traveled at a run, despite lack of good roads. A signal given approaching a station would have fresh horses ready and food on the table for crew and passengers. Route had stations 12 to 113 miles apart, and was sometimes changed to get water. Crew and passengers wore guns; to reduce danger of Indian attacks, mules (less coveted than horses) were used west of Ft. Belknap. The trip one way took 25 days -- seven spent crossing Texas, from Preston (now under Lake Texoma) to Jacksboro, Ft. Belknap, Ft. Chadbourne and El Paso. One way fare for the 2,700 miles was $200. Passengers rarely stopped off, because they might not find seats on a later stage. Merchants in Jacksboro and other towns used Butterfield's light freight service to make mail-order sales. Greatest contribution of the overland stage was its carrying news; coaches also brought mail from the west one to 10 days faster than it came by ship. Service was ended in 1861 by the Civil War. (1966) Incise on base: Early Travel, Communication and Transportation Series erected by Moody Foundation, 1966.